Stuart Hall’s concept of ‘double displacement’ speaks of the alienation that immigrants feel when returning home after leaving for a long period of time, unable to fit into any context. The Sunflower Seed alludes to Ai Weiwei’s Sunflower Seeds; the intention is to illustrate the singular, and displaced (culturally and physically) immigrant who embodies both worlds and the transformation he/she undergoes after leaving behind their home. While Ai employs the citizens of Jingdezhen, a town that is known as the “Porcelain Capital”, The Sunflower Seed is made of softwood, a main export of British Columbia.
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